Is American society decadent?

Come join us for an informal philosophical discussion. No prior knowledge or research is required, but an open mind is.

• Is contemporary American society decadent? The word "decadence" suggests more than ordinary moral complaint. It suggests a civilization grown rich, tired, self-indulgent, cynical, and perhaps unable to believe in itself. In America today, one can find plenty of material for such a diagnosis. Millions of people now seek refuge from ordinary life through entertainment, online distraction, drugs, or antidepressants. The lifestyles of the rich appear increasingly extravagant, theatrical, and detached from the experience of ordinary people. Meanwhile, cynicism has become almost a default opinion: trust in government, media, universities, corporations, and even science has declined, and many people suspect that public ideals are merely masks for money and power.
• And yet "decadence" is a dangerous word. It can easily turn ordinary nostalgia into grand historical prophecy of impending doom. For example, the United States also looked exhausted and crisis-ridden in the 1970s: crime, inflation, oil shocks, Vietnam, Watergate, urban decay. But doomsday did not arrive then. Likewise, people have been announcing "late-stage capitalism" for many decades, but the "late stage" keeps getting extended.

Discussion questions:

• Are we now seeing decline, transformation, or just the usual complaints of every anxious age?
• If you had a choice, would you rather live in the hard, dangerous period when a society is being built, or in the richer, more comfortable period of its maturity?
• Does widespread antidepressant use suggest something is wrong with individuals, with society, or with our expectations of happiness?
• Is cynicism indeed more dangerous than idealism? Which is worse for a society: trusting institutions too much, or trusting them too little?